A Mississippi Democratic Congressman says Clarence Thomas is an Uncle Tom, Mitch McConnell is a racist, and that Republicans are only anti-big government and anti-Obamacare because President Obama is black. Rep. Bennie Thompson made the comments over the weekend while appearing on a New Nation of Islam radio program.

Ive been in Washington. I saw three presidents now. I never saw George Bush treated like this. I never saw Bill Clinton treated like this with such disrespect, Thompson said. That Mitch McConnell would have the audacity to tell the president of the United States  not the chief executive, but the commander-in-chief  that I dont care what you come up with were going to be against it. Now if thats not a racist statement I dont know what is.

I disagree with the use of Uncle Tom, but other than that he has a point. Republicans only became "anti-big government" which is code for "anti-government" once Obama took office. Not a second before that.

I disagree with the use of Uncle Tom, but other than that he has a point. Republicans only became "anti-big government" which is code for "anti-government" once Obama took office. Not a second before that.

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What are you basing that on? Republicans have been anti-big government long before 2008.

What are you basing that on? Republicans have been anti-big government long before 2008.

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Sure could've fooled us! I'm basing it on the fact that the ACA was originally a Republican idea, all of a sudden now they hate it after it was rebranded "Obamacare"....by their own dumb selves. I also base it on the fact the NSA has been doing their thing since way before Obama. Also, every social safety net we have today was also around long before Obama. We have a Supreme Court to decide when the government is stepping over their constitutional boundaries, if you think they've done a poor job up to this point then maybe you should start voting Democrat so we can get more liberal justices on the Court after the prunes die off, because as of now it has a conservative leaning and has for a while.

But in all honesty, name me one single thing that a past Republican president has done to "shrink the government".

Sure could've fooled us! I'm basing it on the fact that the ACA was originally a Republican idea, all of a sudden now they hate it after it was rebranded "Obamacare"....by their own dumb selves. I also base it on the fact the NSA has been doing their thing since way before Obama. Also, every social safety net we have today was also around long before Obama. We have a Supreme Court to decide when the government is stepping over their constitutional boundaries, if you think they've done a poor job up to this point then maybe you should start voting Democrat so we can get more liberal justices on the Court after the prunes die off, because as of now it has a conservative leaning and has for a while.

But in all honesty, name me one single thing that a past Republican president has done to "shrink the government".

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I wasn't arguing with you. I was just curious what you were referring to. The Rs have been talking about the problems of big government for decades.

Their actions, on the other hand, are a different story. At least at the federal level.

For a post like this, I think the OP should man up and say what he thinks about it, before soliciting opinions.

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I think racism in this country is a terribly complicated thing. For older black men and women who lived through the 50s and 60s and saw true, violent discrimination I can see how it can be hard to let go of those past experiences. For the younger generation and that likes to mooch off of the struggles of the prior generations, I think its a bit disingenuous. I think there is still racism in this country, but I think with every passing decade we get closer and closer to that type of mentality evolving out of white people. The problem there is that a lot of times we get a "us vs them" mentality instilled into all of us because every time a white person has something negative to say about a black person they automatically get labeled a racist. It's like some sort of twisted reflex action society has ingrained into all of us.

The sooner people stop screaming racism at every turn the faster the "us vs them" mentality will fade away.

The problem there is that a lot of times we get a "us vs them" mentality instilled into all of us because every time a white person has something negative to say about a black person they automatically get labeled a racist.

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Yeah, it is not "automatic", most of the Rs who get labeled "racist" are not given that label "because they disagree with/dislike Obama", they are given that label based on the sum total of the ignorance they have been spewing and the way they have been spewing it. This "I get called 'racist' because I disagree with Øbama" is just nonsense deflection with no real basis in fact. And it only serves to perpetuate and escalate the "us v. them" divisiveness.

Why is it that every time someone disagrees with a black person they're labeled racist? I disagree with Obama on a lot of things, but none of them have to do with the color of his skin.

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Make things clear before you say things like this.

It's not every time someone disagrees with a black person, otherwise ALL white people would be racists. That's not the case and you should clarify that you really mean Obama.

Now if you had just said Obama instead of race baiting and saying black people I would've countered that I agree with you, but you cannot deny the fact that many Americans both conservative and liberal are basing their decisions about Obama on the color of his skin.

I think racism in this country is a terribly complicated thing. For older black men and women who lived through the 50s and 60s and saw true, violent discrimination I can see how it can be hard to let go of those past experiences. For the younger generation and that likes to mooch off of the struggles of the prior generations, I think its a bit disingenuous. I think there is still racism in this country, but I think with every passing decade we get closer and closer to that type of mentality evolving out of white people. The problem there is that a lot of times we get a "us vs them" mentality instilled into all of us because every time a white person has something negative to say about a black person they automatically get labeled a racist. It's like some sort of twisted reflex action society has ingrained into all of us.

The sooner people stop screaming racism at every turn the faster the "us vs them" mentality will fade away.

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Thank you. I believe that to greater or lesser degrees all humans are racists, in that we categorize groups based on their appearance and economic status as compared to our own. Based on our history it is the whites who feel most threatened and entitled, and the blacks who feel most abused, in many most cases rightfully so. Even poor whites feel a sense of entitlement by virtue of their color. I have witnessed this first hand and I think those on the abused end of the scale, because of lack of opportunity feels a harsher bite from racism and consequently are more likely to make the accusation. It appears to be tricky business bringing both ends of the spectrum together. In the 1960s, we proved that throwing money at the problem for housing alone is not a solution. This will require more social engineering than we are willing to take the time and money to achieve. Although some strong individuals rise above all obstacles to become successes, I imagine that to become a productive member of society, you must be given a good start, food, shelter, a sound family structure, education, and opportunity. If those things don't exist, then the odds of success fall drastically. Bottom line, in large part, it boils down to which groups have the money for education and where they direct that money.

It's not every time someone disagrees with a black person, otherwise ALL white people would be racists. That's not the case and you should clarify that you really mean Obama.

Now if you had just said Obama instead of race baiting and saying black people I would've countered that I agree with you, but you cannot deny the fact that many Americans both conservative and liberal are basing their decisions about Obama on the color of his skin.

Whether it's to disagree with him or not is moot.

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I believe that much of the grief President Obama receives is based on his race, not on his leadership skills.

It's not every time someone disagrees with a black person, otherwise ALL white people would be racists. That's not the case and you should clarify that you really mean Obama.

Now if you had just said Obama instead of race baiting and saying black people I would've countered that I agree with you, but you cannot deny the fact that many Americans both conservative and liberal are basing their decisions about Obama on the color of his skin.

Whether it's to disagree with him or not is moot.

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I was speaking in generalities when I shouldn't have. It's not "every time" and it's not every "black person" but it's not just Obama either. You try to disagree with Al Sharpton or Jesse Jackson on something. I've even seen it locally where a local business owner is forced to fire a young black employee because he stopped showing up for work. This business owner was then labeled as a racist by part of the community. I can honestly say that I have never personally heard anyone say they disagree with Obama based on the color of his skin. I think there are a lot of people that are being unfairly attacked because they disagree with the president.

I was speaking in generalities when I shouldn't have. It's not "every time" and it's not every "black person" but it's not just Obama either. You try to disagree with Al Sharpton or Jesse Jackson on something. I've even seen it locally where a local business owner is forced to fire a young black employee because he stopped showing up for work. This business owner was then labeled as a racist by part of the community. I can honestly say that I have never personally heard anyone say they disagree with Obama based on the color of his skin. I think there are a lot of people that are being unfairly attacked because they disagree with the president.

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I agree with you on that some people will unfairly claim someone is doing something based on race, but that's still no cause for saying that all blacks will cry racism if you disagree with them.

No one is going to just state that they disagree with Obama because he's black, just like no one will state that they agree with him because he's black.

I've also seen the reverse, where a black person gets a job over a less qualified white person, only to have that black person's skills summed up as affirmative action . . . . you know because no black person could ever work the myth of the merit based society for his/her betterment.

It's a double edge sword.

No harm done though, just want to make sure folks understand how things come off.

Again, I agree with you. Obama is the most controversial POTUS ever primarily because of his skin. He makes Americans reflect on their own perspectives no matter what your race.

Why is it every time a black person doesn't toe the party line, they are instantly an Uncle Tom? Aren't they allowed to have an opinion that differs from the crowd?

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"Uncle Tom" is a pejorative and should not be used.

But, the analysis regarding the President is correct. The disrespect is unique, the people doing the dis-respecting frequently have documented regressive views on race. I'm comfortable calling it "racist". There is a lot of noise right now about the use of the word "racist". Well, people who generalize about other people on the basis of skin color are properly called racist. Look it up. I wonder what people who object to the use of the word think the definition is.

I disagree with the use of Uncle Tom, but other than that he has a point. Republicans only became "anti-big government" which is code for "anti-government" once Obama took office. Not a second before that.

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par for the course, no different from the democrats being anti war & supporting the constitution, that is until they get elected, then lets see how many more conflicts we can get involved in while trampling peoples rights.

But, the analysis regarding the President is correct. The disrespect is unique, the people doing the dis-respecting frequently have documented regressive views on race. I'm comfortable calling it "racist". There is a lot of noise right now about the use of the word "racist". Well, people who generalize about other people on the basis of skin color are properly called racist. Look it up. I wonder what people who object to the use of the word think the definition is.

I disagree with the use of Uncle Tom, but other than that he has a point. Republicans only became "anti-big government" which is code for "anti-government" once Obama took office. Not a second before that.

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How old are you again?

Ever in your life bother to read anything by William F. Buckley, Barry Goldwater or Ronald Reagan?

Ever heard of the Republican Revolution of '94 under Clinton (Neocons but still preachers for smaller government)?

And "Uncle Tom" is a dog whistle racist term. It's a throwback slave term for "house ******".

In the last century it's been thrown down way too often for educated, articulate black men.

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